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29.11.10

Homebrewed extremists. Jihad in suburbia.

In response to the thwarted plot, Mayor Sam Adams has floated the idea of cooperating more fully with federal law enforcement agencies. In 2005, the Portland City Council passed an ordinance that put conditions on the city’s continued participation in the F.B.I.Joint Terrorism Task Force out of concern for the civil liberties of residents.

Fun how public opinion only responds to events which are viewed as 'local' or affect people like yourself. Naive idiots. Bleeding hearts. Extreme left-wing Swedish-style liberals.

Si vis pacem, para bellum.

Extremism and homegrown terrorists are kinda like divorce and walking in on your significant other in flagrante delicto - the people who suffer the consequences of any of these rarely (though it happens, everyone has suspicions sometimes) see it coming.

“When you think of someone doing what he did, you think of some crazy kind of guy,” said Mohamed Kassim, 21, a fellow Oregon State student who knew Mr. Mohamud from around campus. “He wasn’t like that. He was just like everybody else.”

Naivety is everywhere. Inoculate yourself and your loved ones.

“If this kid’s being radicalized, it’s not from the locals,” said Jesse Day, a spokesman for the Islamic Center of Portland and Masjed As-Saber, where Mr. Mohamud sometimes worshiped.

Sure, entirely possible. Or just possible that you don't know who it was. Or maybe it was ALL internet-based. Either case, you don't know, so quit trying to make it seem like you do know. You're just trying desperately to protect your mosque and its congregation. A little less hyper-defensiveness and a little more openness and trying to liberalize and reform your religion and its adherents and making sure your people don't end up like this or are influenced by people who feel it's okay to kill someone due to their religion or Sunni/Shiite loyalty.

Mr. Khan and Mr. Day said several people who worship at the mosque said that F.B.I. agents had knocked on their doors late at night on the day of Mr. Mohamud’s arrest, but that none had agreed to speak to the agents.

Congratulations. That really helps build trust in your community when your side of the divide refuses to speak to the FBI about terrorists and extremists in our midst. Thanks. A lot.

“Whatever this event is, it has nothing to do with the mosque,” Mr. Khan said.

Bullcrap. It has everything to do with the mosque. You had a chance to preach an invasive form of anti-radicalism and to try to make sure that your flock did not become fanatics. Maybe you tried. Either case you failed. This guy worshipped there and decided he wanted to kill a bunch of civilians based on the religion that both you and him follow. Sure he's a nutcase and maybe you're not.

A. Prove that.
B. Stop this stuff from happening again and fix your religion.
C. Stop sticking your head in the sand and pretending that the problem will go away. Do your part to protect us all.

That doesn't mean that setting mosques on fire is the way to go - it just means you got your work cut out for you in winning the community back over. Hop to it.